Urinary Tract Infection - Female

Related Symptoms:

Definition

The most common UTI is a bacterial infection of the bladder. The medical name is cystitis.

Your child is taking an antibiotic for the UTI

You are worried that the fever or pain is not getting better fast enough

Symptoms of UTI

Pain, burning or stinging when passing urine

Suspect pain if a young child starts to cry while passing urine

The feeling of "can't wait" to pass urine may occur. This is called urgency.

Passing small amounts of urine at a time often. This is called frequency.

New onset of day or night -time wetting

Pain in the lower tummy may also occur. If the kidney is infected, the pain is in the flank. The flank is the side right below the ribs.

UTIs are a common cause of fevers without other symptoms in young children.

The urine may be cloudy and have a bad odor. Sometimes, there is some blood in the urine.

Causes of UTI

UTIs are caused by bacteria that travel up the urethra into the bladder. The opening of the urethra is just above the vagina.

The vulva is the area outside the vagina. Soaps can cause this area to be red, sore and itchy. This can lead to UTIs. Stool that gets on the vulva is another big factor. This can happen with careless wiping. It can also happen with constipation.

A rare cause is if the bladder isn't emptied all the way. Reason: Urine that stays in the bladder too long can become infected.

Cystitis is more common in girls than boys. This is due to the much shorter length of the urethra in girls.

Diagnosis of UTI

A clean catch urine sample needs to be tested. A UTI is confirmed by finding white blood cells in the urine. A positive culture for bacteria is also needed.